At Home Plate
| Home | Main Archive | Fantasy Archive | Forums | Reviews |
|
|
At Home Plate |
||||
|
|
Game Review Diamond Mind Baseballby Jonathan LeshanskiApril 26, 2003 Game Review: Diamond Mind Baseball version 8 (version 9 coming soon) For PC (runs with Mac on emulation too). Game Type: Baseball Simulation www.diamondmind.com I have been working on this review for several months now - mostly because this game, Diamond Mind Baseball, has a complexity that one would only find on a real baseball diamond. It is a baseball simulation that turns you into a manager, not a player and allows you to influence the game by the decisions and calls you make or fail to make. There are pros and cons to this game but I would rate it as one of the strongest baseball simulations that I have ever had the privilege of playing. One of the biggest problems I have had reviewing this game is that it is so complex that even after several months there are entire layers of the game I still have not explored. It is not to say that this game is flawless but I have never seen a more complexly crafted game than this. The basic disk contains the game and some of the all time great teams that baseball has ever seen. These teams are fun to play however the real treat comes with the various season disks that you get with the set. I tried the 2002 season disk and greatly enjoyed the season so much that I played it several times. While the game is largely statistical, you can manage it down to the smallest nuance if you want to (well you can’t call pitches, but you can take on 3-0 or call for pitchouts or throws to a base). Thus your decisions can greatly skew the way that the game results turn out. Since management is what the game is all about, the fact that you can influence a past season strongly tells you a lot about your ability to manage and the game’s ability to flex beyond simple numbers. We played the game man vs. computer, computer vs. computer, and man vs. man. The results were very good across the board. In letting the computer play the season the results were very consistent with the Diamondbacks having the best season in the majors winning between 102-108 games per season. In eight different season simulations the only real upset was one in which the Red Sox won the AL east by a single game. Results when playing the two-man game or against the computer skewed results by a percentage but did not radically change the overall level of a team. What I mean is that I could not make the Mets, Devil Rays, or Brewers into champions no matter how much I tinkered (well actually I could, but that involved trading players) though I did once get the Mets into contention for a Wild Card. The game features weather effects, park effects, injury factors, DL time, trades (made as they happened), and freak occurrences such as dropped third strikes in which the runner reaches base, catcher interference, runners being hit by batted balls, botched plays, brawls, and ejections – things which rarely occur but which definitely effect game play and season re-creations. In my opinion, one of the strengths of the game really relies on its ability to be customized. You can mix and match players, create rotisserie style teams and even play teams from different eras against each other. Sadly though, I could not figure out some of the details on this, as I wanted to see how the ‘86 Mets would have done against the 02 Angels because I think they were teams very much akin to each other. The historical factors involved in this are well managed, with compensation factors based upon when a player played and what the conditions were. A modern home run hitter hitting in the Dead Ball Era would not put up numbers anything like they might today. Conversely a hitter who hit .300 in 1910 would not be the same as a guy who hits .300 today. The same corrections are applied to fielding, pitching and adjustments for the DH. It is all handled for you to give the game a balance that no other system I have tried can match. Another very cool feature was the ability to which they let you manage your team, you can do almost everything you would do in a front office - draft players, manage a farm system and of course trade. Diamond Mind makes season disks encompassing many eras and years from 1927 on up. They also offer classic teams, greatest teams, and updates to past seasons when appropriate. Features included in the set are career and season specific statistics, schedules, ballpark effects, real stats to compare with the ones you generate, lefty righty splits, ratings on things like bunting, fielding etc, and lineups. Basically everything to make a stat head happy. The flexibility of the game goes far beyond what I have mentioned already. You can modify or create players, ballparks, and leagues. So if you want to create the Great American Ballpark based on what you’ve seen so far you can. Feel that someone’s fielding is overrated? Change it. Want to create a whole new player, go right ahead. There are some very fun things to play with. If you can overcome the urge to create your own players and ballparks, this certainly is a very realistic simulation, and gives you plenty of opportunity to make both good and bad decisions with almost every play. I, like every manager, certainly made my share of bad ones. When all is said and done, the program allows you to have statistics managed in dozens of different ways based upon your tastes. I never bothered much with the statistics and reports, but a friend who contributed to this by playing it against me just loved them. However there were several flaws that did annoy me. Once when playing the Braves and a ball was hit to the outfield the ball was fielded by one of the Jones, and I sneezed mid play. The option to run against him was given, but I couldn’t see which Jones had fielded the ball, Andruw or Chipper. Since there was no option to go back to see the play at that point, I had to guess. One other thing I was not crazy about was the graphical interface. It would not take much to improve the graphics and make the game more eye friendly, as well as more aesthetically pleasing (and thus appeal to a broader audience). My last problem was one of complexity. I do think the control panels and menus could be simplified, and things like mixing and matching teams and players could be made easier. Still all of these flaws are very minor ones. Any dedicated baseball aficionado who knows their way around a computer and thinks that they can do a good job as a manager will find this game an excellent one, which will improve their appreciation for the complexity of the game and what a manager really can do for a team. Give Diamond Mind 3 of 4 balls with a possible upgrading with their new edition. Our Rating System is based on a four ball system as follows: One Ball: Average. Playble but is nothing special. Two Balls: Something men usually have - also means its a cut above average, and worth playing. Three balls: Stands out from its peers and is highly recommended. Four Balls: More than just what two men have when hanging out together, it means it is an exceptional game that truly earns a walk - straight to the local game store to get a copy. |
|
| Copyright 2002-5 At Home Plate, Inc. • Contact us | Home • Archive • Fantasy • Forums • Reviews |